Nothing’s Shocking

Nothing's Shocking cover

Nothing’s Shocking

Nothing’s Shocking is the studio debut, and major label debut, for Jane’s Addiction. The album was recorded at Eldorado Studios in Los Angeles, and released on August 23, 1988.

Some record chains and outlets refused to carry this album due to the nudity on the album’s cover.  While others would carry it, they refused to display the album, making in-store advertisement practically non-existant.  According to the Sept 10, 1988 issue of Billboard, Steve Marmaduke, then VP of purchasing for Amarillo, TX based Western Merchandisers was quoted as saying: “It’s the second-most repulsive cover I’ve ever seen.”

The cover is of a plaster-cast sculpture made by Perry Farrell and Casey Niccoli that depicts nude Siamese twins on a rocking chair, with their heads ablaze.  Casey’s body was used for the plaster casting.  Some of the footage of the plastering process appears in the original video for Mountain Song, the only single from this album.  Overall, despite Jane’s constant touring at the time, and the several songs that were released as radio promo singles, the album did not receive much commercial attention until after the band’s follow-up album was released.

Alternate Versions:

The biggest difference across all versions of this album is the track Pigs in Zen, which is considered a “bonus track” and is not found on any vinyl editions, yet does appear on versions released on other formats.

There is a limited edition 12″ vinyl version of this album that comes in a rubber record jacket.

Original versions of this CD have the track listing and producer credit listed in silver on the disc’s U-Card, instead of teal.  These versions are quite rare, as the teal text version appeared many years ago.

The Japanese CD version of this album has a pair of notable variations.  On the album’s cover, the pubic hair of the statutes has been airbrushed out.  This is due to pubic hair being taboo in Japanese culture, so the cover was altered to fit in with social norms. Additionally, the album spines include Japanese text, and the track listing and producer credit are displayed in silver, like the original CD release.  This version also includes a Japanese lyric sheet.  There are 4 slightly different Japanese versions.  Two are identical aside from promo stampings.  The other have slightly different ID numbers and JCards.  Musically, all four versions are identical.

In 2009, Rhino Records released a limited edition version of this album on 180g vinyl.

A cassette promo version of this album exists, it uses standard  black & white Warner Brothers promotional packaging.

Older CD versions of this album were released in a CD longbox.

On June 19, 2012, Audio Fidelity will release a limited edition 24k gold disc version of this album.  This release will be limited to 5,000 copies and come on a 24k HDCD disc.  The disc is backwards compatible with standard compact disc players, but compatible devices can take advantage of higher bit audio.  This release appears to also be a remastered version of the album.

Album Charting & Awards:

Nothing’s Shocking was certified as a Gold album in June of 1990, and platinum in January of 1998.

This album was nominated for a Grammy in 1988 for Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental, the same year the band Metallica’s And Justice For All… was nominated.  Both albums lost to Jethro Tull’s Crest of a Knave.

In November of 2003, Nothing’s Shocking was listed at number 309 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Track Listing:

  1. Up The Beach
  2. Ocean Size
  3. Had A Dad
  4. Ted, Just Admit It…
  5. Standing in the Shower… Thinking
  6. Summertime Rolls
  7. Mountain Song
  8. Idiots Rule
  9. Jane Says
  10. Thank You Boys
  11. Pigs In Zen

Cassette versions of this album have include tracks 1-5 on side A, and tracks 6-11 on side B.  Vinyl versions of this album include tracks 1-5 on side A, and tracks 6-10 on side B.


Nothing’s Shocking was produced by Dave Jerden and Perry Farrell.  Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who would join Jane’s Addiction during the 1997 Relapse Tour, performs on the track Idiots Rule.  He is part of the horn section, along with band friends Angelo Moore and Christopher Dowd, both from the band Fishbone.

Release Date: 08/23/1988, 04/19/2009 (Re-Release), 6/19/2012 (Gold HDCD)
Released By: Warner Brothers Records, Rhino Records (Re-Release), Audio Fidelity (Gold HDCD)
ID Number(s): 25727 (CD, Cassette, & Vinyl), WX 216 925815-1 (Rubber Jacket), WX 216 (U.K.) , WE 381 (France), WB-25727 (Cassette Promo), 25P2-2289 (Japan), WPCR-1173 (Japan), WPCR-75643 (Japan)
Mediums: Cassette, Compact Disc, Gold HDCD, 12″ Vinyl, 180-gram 12″ Vinyl, iTunes, Amazon MP3
Run Time: 40:53 (Vinyl), 45:29



The following is the press releases, as penned by Perry Farrell, for this album.  It is written very tongue-in-cheek, and many of the claims made in it should not be taken literally.

Jane’s Addiction: Nothing’s Shocking
Bred & Spread from Los Angeles CA
The mighty Jane’s Addiction
Jane’s Addiction are
the formost experts on beauty. They are
the biggest braggarts, money grabbers.
Their mascot is a rooster. They can make
a song out of everything, They say they can blow you away because they know they can.
If the couldn’t they swear they’d shut up-but they can.
They’re not macho monkeys, nor are they fags.
They lick what every their girlfriends do.
They like their manager being called a jerk, asshole.
Now you want to know their names
but the get tired of telling
the same story
over and over
till they can’t
tell it no more
and while your questions
are understandable
their tiresome
and they’re tedious…. Perry Farrell was looking for a new bass player for his band PSI-
COM. he was studying to be a doctor and wouldn’t let drugs
get in his way. By pooling their money together and borrowing the rest, they cut a record (PSI- COM) and
pressed it up. this led them right to their first taste of getting ripped off by the record industry. There was also severe tension within the band. One by one
the members had converted to Hare Krishnas. Within their music lay the squirming seeds of Jane’s Addiction
mixed with the fanatical wailings of god worship. The band
split further and further apart. To retaliate against the
god fearing members, Perry started reading black magic
and claimed to worship the god Bapheme, or goat headed god.
He found enough flaws in the bass player to boot him out.
What he needed was a new band.
And a referee.
The house he shared with Jane had eight rooms,
and thirteen roommates. She thought her friend Eric Avery
would get along good with him and put the two in touch
with each other. The day they met, it was one hundred degrees,
inside carpet walls. Eric put down his head and locked in to something. He played the same groove over and over
for about forty-five minutes. It was the first song
Jane’s Addiction every played together.
Their first show was out of town in Orange County. It was “old dog night”.
All old dogs were let in free. They were booked with a top forty cover
band, who invited their I.B.M. friends from work to see them. “Jane’s” got up and emptied the place. There was one guy with a beard who stayed. They
never learned the beard headed man’s name, but they did discuss their
differences, leaving the band, the bartender, and the booker.
The next show was at the Roxy. They were to support some faggy
english band who they killed. They were great except for one thing,
they stunk. At the time, band commitments were somewhat shakey. Besides the
drummer with the three bands, the guitar player believed himself to be
a germinating seed planted here on earth by U.F.O’s. he became an officer in an organization know as the “U.F.O.s” (pronounced OOF-OES).
Eventually he disappeared and now one knows where he went.
You know we got signed to Warner Brothers
Do you want to here about the bidding wars?
We had em all kissing our feet.
Getting a record label to put out the bucks is
the best insurance a band has.
They news papers developed a money fixation
They couldn’t get passed discussing the deal
“Jane’s” forgave them, after all
they knew nothing else about the band
If you want to know a secret?
We could have signed for twice as much
Their first manager was a music loving prostitute. The band
loved her dearly, she was really enthusiastic but she too left town and has not been heard of since. Some of their happiest
memories were shared with her. Some of their greatest shows were
financed by her. They rented out ballrooms, and put out shows in the
pure rock tradition. The fans were greeted at the box office by
manager #1, who insisted on going topless, honest. Inside, bands played
to their sweaty friends, and occasionally dealt with their inner most
feelings , watching a transsexual dance troupe.
There was one who sang the blues.
She was awful. Her friend saved the show, she danced with
flaming shish kabobs. She could excite any man alive. Manager #1
was out done. She found solace by the classic motorcycle display.
“I’m real” she assured the bikers who lit up the room with
pent up male aggression.
The president of Warners said upon listening to “Nothing’s Shocking”
“You guys are gonna warp an entire generation”.
After their shows, people attest to feeling as if they had
let a stranger touch them.
“I watched a man drown. I really did. I didn’t get up to help him at all. Of course he as on television….”
The first drummer had a business, smuggling canaries in to
the country from Tahiti. He would drug them and then swallow
them. He overdosed on the canaries, and died on a plane.
Stephen Perkins was the first drummer’s twin brother. He took his place, never having played drums before.
He also started dating the dead brothers girlfriend,
who happened to be Eric’s little sister.
Before he dated Jodi Foster.
You must have heard, we are the ultimate crowd pleasers?
We want you to know everything about us, I mean
everything. Honestly do you think that if a journalist
found out something that was damaging to you, he would
spill it to the public? I don’t
A matter of equal use wouldn’t you say ?
A bottle and a drinker
Watching each other empty out
Compare Jane’s Addiction to a life insurance agency.
There’s really quite a difference, isn’t there?
Dave Navarro needs love. Who’s a better guitarist? No one.
We broke up one night, playing in New York. He drank too
much cause life’s so fucked. When he sits down on the stage
to play guitar, his world truly becomes his own. We were
something that night. ” The Mighty Jane’s Addiction”
as we say.
We put out record out, self titled. It was to be the second time we were ripped off by the music industry. I
could go on, but we’re not bitter anymore.

Related Releases & Album Singles:
